C1

1966 Winter Dusk on North China Plain

Night after day the snow finally cleared up.

On the west side, there was a bright red sun, illuminating the snow that reached to her calves with a tinge of red. Occasionally, someone would come out to sweep up the snow on the street, or someone would take a tool to clean the snow on the roof.

In a courtyard at the head of Shen Village Village, a 15-16 year old boy was standing on top of a roof, pushing snow down with a wooden stick. In the courtyard, there was also an 11-12 year old boy leading a 7-18 year old boy and a 3-year old girl sweeping snow.

Just then, the thick cotton curtains of the east wing were opened, and a sixty year old grandmother shouted towards the boy on the roof, "Pei Hua, quickly call your Auntie Hua over, tell his your mother is about to give birth, quickly!"

The boy who was called Pei Hua was startled for a moment, then immediately went down the roof, stepped on the snow and ran towards the village.

When the kids in the yard saw their grandma panicking, they followed her into the east wing.

As soon as he entered the east wing, he saw a big stove, a big iron pot in the morning. Next to it was a small stove for cooking and a stove for boiling water.

There was a large kang next to the window, with a row of cabinets at the end, and a square table in the corner with a long stool in front of it. There was no other furniture.

A woman in her forties was lying on the brick bed, sweating profusely. She gritted her teeth and leaned against the wall as she watched the kids come in. "Hey, little ancestors. Why are you all here? Get out of here quickly."

The little girl said, "Grandma, I want to stay with mother."

Grandma said, "Your mother is fine. I'm going to add younger brothers and sisters to your family. Pei Jun, take your brother and sister to boil some water and prepare some firewood. "

He first let his sister and brother sit in front of the stove, then washed the big iron pot once more. Then, he went to the firewood and carried a big armful of crotch orange, melting the match and lighting the fire. The three siblings sat in front of the stove in silence, watching the lapping fire at the bottom of the pot.

In the room,'s grandma followed Pei Hua's mother's instructions and found something to cover the child with, then went to the firewood room and hugged a big handful of dry wheat straw. Whenhe was done, she picked up the bed and sprinkled a layer of ash on the bed, then added some straw.

Pei Hua went to the village to find the midwife Auntie Hua, and with much difficulty, they finally reached home. When the Auntie Hua saw Grandma coming out to receive him, he gasped for breath and said, "Your family's brat won't listen to him, so he pulled me and ran back to your house. "I'm so tired."

The granny quickly said: "Don't mind him, Auntie Hua, but I think Mother Pei Hua will have to wait a bit longer after drinking the water first."

Auntie Hua raised her cup and took a sip. She then went to the side and picked up a bowl of water from the cupboard and slowly drank it from the pot. She then pushed the bowl of sugar water to Pei Jun and whispered: "Pei Jun, I'll give you to eat sweet nothings with your younger brother and sister."

After saying that, he touched Pei Zhi's hair, causing Pei Zhi to raise her head and give the Auntie Hua a big smile.

Auntie Hua brought her bag into the room, looked at the pregnant woman, then went to find a washbasin to wash her hands. She told his grandma: "Sister-in-law, find some copper bowls for me to prepare some hot water. I think Pei Hua's mom will be here soon.

When Grandma agreed, she took the candied eggs she had prepared beside the stove into the room and said to Pei Hua's mother, "Mother Pei Hua, let's eat first to save energy. Your Auntie Hua is about to say it. "

Pei Hua's mother grabbed his grandmother's arm and sat up. Looking at the eggs in the bowl, he ate two and said, "Mother, these two should be shared among the children."

Grandma took the spoon from the bowl and said, "What are you talking about? You should eat all the food that I gave you. You need to use your strength to give birth. How are you going to give birth if you don't have the strength? The children are still waiting for you to add a younger brother and a younger sister. "

Pei Hua's mother nodded and finished all of the eggs in the bowl along with the water.

Auntie Hua had already put away all her tools, bent down and looked at Pei Hua's mother's condition, then said to his grandmother: "Sister-in-law, with more oil lamps, we can touch a child's head. Let's work harder, Pei Hua's mother already had more than one, this child is also very born."

Grandma went to the other rooms to get an oil lamp to light it up, which made it brighter. Grandma and Auntie Hua laid Mother Pei Hua on the straw bed, and Auntie Hua said to Mother Pei Hua, "Mother Pei Hua, I told you to use all of your strength, come, prepare to use all of your strength."

Pei Hua's mother clenched his teeth as he used all his strength, and before long, he gave birth to the child in his womb.

In the outer room, after Pei Hua invited Auntie Hua over, he sat in front of the stove with his brothers and sisters to warm them up. Pei Zhi asked Pei Hua quietly: "Big brother, do you think our mother can give us a younger brother or younger sister?"

Pei Hua said: "I don't know, does Pei Zhi want a little brother or a little sister?"

Pei Zhi thought for a bit, then said: "We should still have a little sister, I'm the only girl here, there are so many of us."

At this time, the weak cry of a baby came from inside the house, so weak that if you didn't listen carefully, you wouldn't be able to hear it. Pei Tian said, "Such a small voice, I don't know if it's a boy or a girl."